Essence Heart.

Uncle Sun cast a wary glance around before lowering his voice. "This is not the place to talk. Have you finished your breakfast?"

Wu Ming, who had just sipped his tea, nodded slightly. He placed the cup down without urgency. "I can leave whenever."

Uncle Sun let out a breath and rose from his seat. "Then let us go."

To the side, Qing'er remained seated, her head lowered, her eyes reddened. Tears streaked her cheeks as she clenched the edge of her sleeve. To her father, this may have been a calculated move to benefit the family. But to her, it had been real. The love in her heart was not something she could simply discard.

Uncle Sun placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Enough, Qing'er. Some things are beyond us."

She bit her lip, refusing to speak. When Wu Ming finally stood to leave, she suddenly raised her head. "Do you regret it?"

Wu Ming halted. "Regret what?"

"Leaving the village. Entering the sect." Her voice trembled.

Wu Ming met her gaze, his expression extremely sure. "Never."

Her entire body shook. It felt like, she had known the answer before she asked, yet hearing it still made her heart ache. She forced herself to look at him. "You've changed."

Wu Ming asked casually. "Have I?"

"You don't smile like you used to. You feel... distant."

Wu Ming said nothing. He did not deny it, nor did he offer any explanation.

Her eyes desperately searched his expression for something, but his eyes betrayed nothing. Finally, she looked away. "Forget it."

Without another word, Wu Ming followed Uncle Sun out of the house. The village was the same as ever. But in his eyes, it felt even more insignificant.

They soon arrived at Uncle Sun's residence. A simple home, unremarkable in every way. Uncle Sun glanced at his daughter and said, "Stay outside. This does not concern you."

Qing'er did not argue. She simply turned away.

Wu Ming and Uncle Sun stepped inside. Uncle Sun led him to the back room, where an old wooden shelf leaned against the wall. With some effort, he managed to push it to the side, revealing a wooden door beneath it.

Wu Ming's gaze deepened. Beneath the wooden cover was a narrow hole, barely wide enough for one person to pass through.

Darkness stretched downward, swallowing all light. He extended his divine sense, but even with a range of thirty meters, he could not touch the bottom.

A deep, hidden tunnel.

Uncle Sun sighed. "It took me years to carve this out. No tools. No loud noises. I had to be careful, or else the Immortal overseeing this place might have noticed."

Wu Ming gestured. "Lead the way."

Naturally, he had no intention of going first. Vigilance was a habit that needed to be ingrained deep in the bones. Even against a mortal, he would not lower his guard.

As Uncle Sun descended, Wu Ming followed with thoughts swirling in his mind.

Could this be a trap? Was there a connection between Uncle Sun and Senior Brother Liu Han? The possibility was exceedingly low, but not nonexistent. He remained prepared.

The descent was slow. Eventually, the path widened, revealing a small hidden underground chamber. Uncle Sun reached for an oil lamp, lighting it with a flicker of flame.

A dim glow spread through the undeground space.

Wu Ming's expression changed.

Before him, piled two and half meters high, lay countless tiny, blood-colored crystal fragments.

A moment of silence passed.

Uncle Sun noticing his reaction revealed a proud smile. "This is Scarlet Blood Crystals."

Wu Ming's gaze lingered on the blood-red fragments. He knew exactly what they were.

'A Black Rank blood path spiritual material. Though of low grade, its value is immense. Something every blood path cultivator desires. With this much… I could easily refine my Innate blood element Essence Heart and still have excess material left.'

Wu Ming was expressionless, but greed flashed deep within his eyes.

An Essence Heart, whether of wind, water, fire, or any element, was a rare and valuable attribute. Cultivators when performing techniques, mimicked the natural forces of the world. Wu Ming's Jade Serpent Sword Technique harnessed jade elemental power despite him lacking it.

But if he possessed an innate Jade elemental Essence Heart, it would no longer be mere imitation. He could directly channel jade energy, elevating his technique to an entirely new level. A low-grade technique could surpass high-grade ones if the Essence Heart was refined of a higher quality.

The same principle applied to the innate Blood elemental Essence Heart. And with this much Scarlet Blood Crystals, its formation was well within reach.

Wu Ming stepped closer, his hand hovering over Uncle Sun's shoulder. A faint smile curved his lips. "Uncle Sun, I must say, I am quite surprised. A mere mortal, yet you've acquired such a large quantity of Scarlet Blood Crystals. Heh. I wonder… how'd you come by it?"

As he spoke, a faint pressure leaked from his body.

Uncle Sun stiffened. Cold sweat formed on his forehead. He let out a dry laugh. "Haha… No need for such methods, Master Wu Ming. I'll tell you the truth."

Wu Ming said nothing, simply watching.

Uncle Sun wiped his brow. "You should remember that I've long been in charge of inspecting the tools used by the miners. About eight years ago, I started noticing something peculiar."

He gestured to the crystals. "These little things have a sticky nature. They would cling to the mining tools, but no one paid them any mind. So I started scraping them off. At the time, I had no idea what they were. But how could things immortals make us mortals work for be worthless? So bit by bit, I collected them. And after years of patience, asking the right questions, listening to careless conversations, I learned their true value."

Wu Ming silently picked up a fragment. Even in his fingers, it clung stubbornly to his skin.

He lowered his gaze, assessing Uncle Sun's words. The explanation was logical. Given how small each fragment was, the loss was negligible enough that neither the Immortal in charge nor the miners had noticed. But over the years, it had accumulated into a treasure trove.

A smile crept onto Wu Ming's lips.

'An unexpected gain!'

Wu Ming didn't even blink. With a single thought, his divine sense swept over the Scarlet Blood Crystals.

Poof!

In an instant, the entire pile vanished into his storage pouch, as though it had never existed.

"Huh?" Uncle Sun stood frozen. His breath hitched, and for a brief moment, face twisted like he had swallowed a fly.

He had expected some bargaining, some discussion, and maybe even some gratitude. But this? This was outright robbery!

'You little bastard. At least pretend to hesitate! At least act like you feel bad! I spent eight damn years scraping those together. Eight years! Do you know how much dust I swallowed? How much backbreaking work I did? And you, you just–poof–fucking take it all?!'

His teeth ground together so hard his jaw ached. 'If my son becomes an Immortal, I swear I'll make you cough up every last damn crystal! And breaking my Qing'er's heart too? You think you'll get away with that? May the heavens strike you down! May you choke on your own arrogance! May the women you love turn out to be a man!'

But despite the violent curses roaring in his mind, Uncle Sun forced his face into something resembling a smile, though it twitched at the edges.

His voice, when it finally came out, was stiff and unpleasant. "Now that Master Wu has accepted my humble gift, I trust that my son's safety will be ensured."

Before he even finished speaking, Wu Ming's smile disappeared.

"Sun Cheng!"

Like the gates of hell had swung open, the name slammed into Uncle Sun's ears.

Wu Ming's gaze was sharp enough to flay flesh from bone. "Stealing from the sect? Are you tired of living?"

Uncle Sun's soul nearly flew out of his body. His mouth flapped open, but his throat was too dry to make a sound.

Wu Ming leisurely unsheathed his sword.

A glint of cold steel.

Uncle Sun stumbled backward, sweat pouring down his face.

"You..."